Another one bites the dust: Nintendo’s Miitomo haemorrhaging users

Back in April, Nintendo's Miitomo app was ruling the charts on global app stores, only to have relegated itself to oblivion less than a couple of months later.

Boasting ten million downloads not so long ago, Nintendo's Miitomo is being actively played by less than three million today.

With Miitomo, Nintendo offered a new social platform for users to connect and chat with each other using curated Mii characters. These characters could be modified by users to match their looks, voice, dressing style and personalities. With Nintendo's marketing push and its unique character, the app caught on to users whose Facebook obsession had almost burnt out.

But unlike the world's largest social network, Miitomo's rise lasted only a couple of months. As per new data from SurveyMonkey, out of ten million who downloaded the app in its early days, less than three million are using it, that too not every day. Miitomo's average usage hovers around 2.3 times a week, compared to games like Candy Crush Saga and Clash Royale which are played 3.3 times and 4.2 times a week respectively.

"In Miitomo’s case, this lower-than-peers engagement translates into higher churn. The game’s weekly churn more than 50% means that over half of the users of Miitomo on a given week won’t come back and play it again the following week. For some apps that don’t need frequent use this isn't a problem, but for games like Miitomo that are designed for frequent use, churn at this level foreshadows a quick decline," said SurverMonkey.

The survey added that the number of Miitomo's weekly active users as of now is 74 per cent lower than when the app was at its peak, which means that three out of four users left the app less than eight weeks after downloading it. However, the survey doesn't say how many still have the app installed in their phones or how many have left it there unused.

So why did the decline happen?

While Nintendo is a new player in the mobile gaming genre, it will probably take the gaming giant a few more apps to measure the pulse of gaming fans. Mobile gaming fans are finicky- some download apps to see what the fuss is all about, some just feel like trying out a new game before moving on to another and a few are die-hard gaming fans whose sole purpose in life is to be the first to earn a million coins on Miitomo.

As Miitomo dies a quick death, Ninteno isn't in the mood to give up without a fight. The company is reportedly launching a few more apps this year including Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing and Pokemon Go, an app version of the insanely popular Pokemon master.

"What matters is building an app that captures users’ attention and keeps them coming back," said SurveyMonkey.